Well what can you say? - Different to an XT / MW2 that`s for sure and definately different enough to warrant having both.

The XT certainly doesn`t Klang, bang and grit like the MW1 (even in lo-quality mode) and it`s filters are of the "DSP-Perfick" slushy sweet multimode variety, yeah, it can sound nasty, but not in a MW1/Wave/PPG kinda way. Comparing it now to the PPG 2.3, the MW1 is definatley "warmed up" and can actually create analog style pads and strings (way out of the 2.3`s rep IMO) but it loses some of that harsh PPG bite (some may say "thankfully!!").

Powerful deep digital basses, wonderful glass-rim type sweeps and complex evolving pads and all manner of eerie noises just pour out of the thing once you`ve either got the hang of the editing or downloaded the PC editor (see links on this site). talking about editing, many would be put off by the arcane system involved but it`s actually quite intuitive when you get used to it (even under OS2.0).

Well to summarise, it`s a great sounding machine and the closest I`m ever gonna get to a PPG, it copies it`s older cousin mostly well and also offers you an affordable slice of the Expensive WAVE, they`re getting thinner and thinner on the ground thesedays, and a bit of price hike in the UK seems to be going on at the moment (around £450) as people realise that the XT is neither a replacement nor inferior for it`s digi filters either, just Different..

What a unique synth! As a boy in the eighties, I lusted over the PPG Wave synths...doomed to never be able to afford one. Recently found a Wave 2.3 on eBay and bid furiously, only to lose :( Then I found an ad for this beast! I was curious but concerned that I wouldn't be able to achieve the sound of a PPG. Boy was I wrong! Within an hour I had already created sounds I had heard by artists such as Thomas Dolby, Tangerine Dream, Depeche Mode and Front 242! That lovely grainy 8 bit sound coupled with the mindbending wave-scanning and a true analog filter make sounds that only aliens hear in their dreams. So icy! So Martian! Yet, so warm...and alive! This sure isn't a synth you would overuse either. A little bit goes a long way. The eight note polyphony can be a touch hampering, but if you consider how dynamic and extreme the sounds can be, using chords almost results in overkill. My only real gripes about this box: 1) If you don't have a programmer or a software editor, you're gonna want one! lots-o-menus! 2) The volume envelope attack setting is too coarse. You either have a sharp "click" at 00 or you have a mushy attack at 01. No grey area. Why? Oh yeah! Make sure you use effects with this box. Detuning can be nice, but a touch of chorus and some light reverb really make it shine!

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Thursday-Dec-28-2000 at 14:36

dopy
a hobbyist user
from netherlands
writes:

It was that someone let me here some of his MicroWave II when I got to think I might wanted it too. But then I came across the first MicroWave and the rest speaks for itself. I like my Nord Modular, but I like the MicroWave even more. I only use little of it in a song so that the sound it produces stands out even more! It's got some awesome analog filters that will make me drool. The only downside is it's user interface. But I solved it with a program from soundtower. Waldorf has got me big time.

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Thursday-Dec-14-2000 at 14:01

Stefan
a part-time user
from Germany
writes:

After a few months with the XT I returned to my good old MW. Not that the XT sounds worse, but it's just another thing and it simply cannot emulate the original power of the MW. With the XT (more or less similar to the MW2) Waldorf got even further away from the old PPG sound. The MW can produce very harsh and cutting sounds if you distort the amplifiers, comes very close to a DX7. I testet the 2.2 in a local music store and was simply blown away by its warmth and power. The MW was produced as the rackversion of the old Wave but the sound is totally different. I wonder if the new software-emulation of this monster is any good.

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Thursday-May-25-2000 at 07:32

Sub Cat Mike /Producer
a professional user
from US
writes:

I've had my MW for about 4 years and I'm in love with its sound, the only downside on this synth is its menu based OS, even though its a really smart matrix system, knobs are always a miss, so I went out an got a XT thinking it could replace my Original, the XT is a fantastic machine, which adds new features & more DSP power, but the sound is not the same, the original has a warm shine around its tone and it has a beefy punch which puts the XT to shame, I ended up returning the XT and tracking down a Access MW Programmer (took me two months and cost me $600!! but I can't say that I regret my choice as the Original Microwave simply sounds better! THE Original MW is in the same class the TR TB SP1200 ect. cos of the its character and punch.. this is the true rack version of the Wave,.. people who walk in the studio are always amazed and it will stay with me forever this is a classic!